Fluid accumulation due to sickness or trauma may develop in areas within a mammalian body not designed to accommodate such accumulation. One particular area prone to abnormal accumulation is between sheets of tissue covering the outside of the lung and lining the chest cavity, known as the pleural space. While a normal functioning pleural space contains approximately 5-20 mL of fluid, fluid turnover occurs on an hourly basis such that approximately 5-10 L of fluid passes through the pleural space every day. Thus, any disruption in fluid turnover may result in over-accumulation of fluid in the pleural space, known as pleural effusion. The symptoms of pleural effusion include dyspnea, tachycardia, cough, breathing difficulty and chest pain as the lungs are prevented from fully expanding upon breathing. Pleural effusion is a condition secondary to trauma, cancer, nephrotic syndrome, kidney disease, pancreatitis, congestive heart failure and cirrhosis, and as such, patients affected with pleural effusion will usually die within three months of onset. Consequently, treatment of pleural effusion is generally provided for patient quality of life in his/her final days.
There are numerous methods to treat pleural effusion and/or other unwanted fluid accumulation in a mammalian body. Fluid drainage procedures, such as thoracentesis, may be used to provide patient relief. Thoracentesis involves the introduction of a needled catheter into the pleural space through an incision in the chest cavity, after which fluid is drawn out using a syringe or a vacuum source. Drawbacks with this procedure, however, include the fact that the needle may inadvertently puncture a lung, leading to aggravation of the problem, and the fact that fluid readily re-accumulates in the pleural space after the procedure is performed such that it may become necessary for a patient to undergo the procedure every few days. Pleurodesis is a procedure in which fluid is prevented from accumulating due to the sealing of the space between pleura with either sterile talc or an antibiotic, after first draining the existing fluid. Another method to treat pleural effusion is to surgically implant a chest tube or catheter such that fluid accumulation can constantly or periodically be removed without invasive surgery. The implanted catheter may be connected to an external catheter or drainage tube by a one-way valve mechanism, which permits fluid drainage through the use of a negative pressure source, such as a vacuum. One example of such a catheter system is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,484,401 to Rodriguez et al., which is expressly incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein.
While catheter-based systems have been described in the prior art, and indeed are being utilized by patients in the US, significant drawbacks exist. For example, although effective and clinically acceptable, existing catheter-based systems suffer from one or more of the following deficiencies: 1) the catheter/drainage tube connection is not secure and can be easily pulled apart (while not life threatening, accidental disconnection will cause loss of vacuum pressure mandating set-up with a new system; also, such disconnects can be the cause of pleural or peritoneal infection); 2) the clamp supplied on the drainage tube is difficult to use and is not an effective means of controlling fluid flow; 3) the system is useless in the event of an accidental loss of vacuum (effective safety mechanisms designed to prevent such accidental or premature loss of vacuum are missing); 4) the clamp sealing the vacuum chamber (which must be removed in order to activate drainage) is difficult for older patients and care givers to detach; 5) the collection chambers provided with the drainage systems (typically 500 mL) are not adequately sized for peritoneal drainage where fluid collection volumes can reach 2000 mL.
Thus, there is a need for an improved system for corporeal drainage, which will provide beneficial aspects, including those that will facilitate the use thereof regardless of patient location or condition.